When HMV came to Canada back in the 80s, it immediately set out to build a flagship store along the Yonge Street strip. I can’t even begin to guess who much money I dumped into 333 Yonge. In fact, I was one of those customers who suggested that the store provide shopping baskets and grocery [&hellip.. more
For more than 50 years, the entire recorded music industry has been based on selling us albums. Although Columbia introduced the long-playing 33 1/3 album in 1948, it really didn’t take off until about 1965 when rock artists began to exploit the format. The industry began to move from pushing 7-inch singles to higher-margin 12-inch [&hellip.. more
Andre Williams passed away on March 17th, 2019 at the age of 82. The Detroit native by way of Alabama started recording R&B songs in his teens with family-run label Fortune Records, and released his last album I Wanna Go Back to Detroit City in 2016. Despite co-writing the hit “Shake a Tail Feather” and [&hellip.. more
Queen guitarist Brian May–that’s Dr. May, by the way; he has a PhD in astrophysics–has been involved in a number of space exploration programs, including the New Horizons probe which is now far beyond Pluto. He is part of the team’s stereo image experts. Back in January, New Horizons made a flyby of a strange [&hellip.. more
Artist: Black Label SocietySong: “Spoke In The Wheel”Album: SingleBand location: Los Angeles, California Why I like it: Stripped down and full of emotion. Watch: Artist: Rain Over St. AmbroseSong: “Dedication”Album: SingleBand location: Yarmouth, Nova Scotia Why I like it: Upbeat with relaxed vocals. Watch: Artist: Mammoth PenguinsSong: “Closure”Album: SingleBand location: Cambridge, E.. more
Last full day of winter. Last full day of winter. Last full day of winter. Last full day of winter. Music news for March 19, 2019. Weekly Canadian music sales and streaming stats vs. a year ago: Total albums, -18.3%; digital albums, -19.3%; physical albums, -17.3%; CDs, -20.8%; digital tracks, -30.1%; vinyl LPs, 8.6%; on-demand [&hellip.. more
Some thoughts about the 48th annual Juno Awards which were held last night at Budweiser Gardens. London did a fantastic job of hosting. I was in the city for a couple of days leading up to the awards and the city was electric with excitement. Most every event was sold out well in advance. Showcases [&hellip.. more
Yes, MySpace is still a thing. But it’s less of a thing after a big oopsie the service encountered when it moved data to new servers. Everything that had been posted since 2015 is safe. However, everything before that–which means twelve years’ worth of data and posts and files–are gone forever. I draw your attention [&hellip.. more
With #MeToo concerns on everyone’s mind, the Canadian music industry is taking steps to root out harassment, bullying and violence in an effort to create safe workplaces. In the days leading up to the Juno Awards in London, 42 members of a coalition of groups from within the Canadian music industry formally signed the code. [&hellip.. more
Album sales continue to crater as more and more of the planet moves to streaming. The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), which keeps track of how things are going around the world, has released a list of the best-selling albums for 2018. Again, these are global sales figures. If these numbers don’t underscore [&hellip.. more
The guitar riff is the foundation of so much of the rock canon. It’s that catchy repeating hook, often played down low on the guitar, that draws you into the song and then forms the basis (most of the time) for the rest of the song. Technically, a riff is known as an ostinato, a [&hellip.. more
And how are we after St. Patrick’s Day? I wonder what absenteeism is like today. Ponder that as we go through music news for March 18, 2019. Paris Jackson, daughter of Michael, was said have made a suicide attempt. She says “What are you talking about?” The Beastie Boys are going on tour again. Sort [&hellip.. more
Before there were guitar heroes like Jimmy Page and Jimi Hendrix, a Boston ukulele player transplanted to California emerged with a sound that ended up influencing generations of guitar players. Dick Dale, an actual surfer, was the inventor of surf rock, the twangy electric guitar style that found its way into everyone from punk bands [&hellip.. more
For the first fifty years of the recorded music industry, everyone had to make do with scratchy, fragile 78 RPM records. These 10-inch discs dating from the late 1800s and generally worked fine. It wasn’t until 1948 when Columbia Records came along with its long-playing albums pressed on a new plastic called polyvinyl chloride that [&hellip.. more
The big day might not come until November, the deadline for early Indie Week registration is April 9 – just a few weeks away. It’s one of Canada’s biggest events in indie music with acts from around the world coming in for five jam-packed days and nights of workshops, performances and meeting other like-minded artists. [&hellip.. more
[Mike Carr has put together a massive volume on Canadian music history entitled Canadian Alternative & Indie Reference and Collector’s Guide. It’s an incredible discography of hundreds of bands. This is the latest excerpt from his book. – AC] Richard Terfry (born March 4, 1972), better known by his stage name Buck 65, is an alternative [&hellip.. more
The broadcast for the Junos is just like any other TV show: It’s all about producing a mainstream network TV show that can attract as big an audience as possible to satisfy advertisers. In other words, the Junos are a Sunday night variety show that focuses on star power and performances instead of handing out [&hellip.. more
As something of a cheese snob–I love a good Comte with a glass of port after a nice meal–I’m always looking for interesting cheese to try beyond your average cheddar. Word out of Switzerland–a country that knows cheese–is that researchers have determined that cheese likes music as it ages, hip-hop in particular. Why the boffins [&hellip.. more
With the release of The Dirt on Netflix, Motley Crue has released some new music, including this cover of Madonna’s “Like a Virgin.” Please enjoy.. more
Being in a band is a time consuming thing, so it’s not surprising that there’s a dearth of them producing podcasts on a regular basis. Come to think of it, I can’t think of a single one off the top of my head. I’m sure some exist, but none have really broken through. The Pixies [&hellip.. more
Pi Day (March 14 or 3/14) was Thursday, but the excitement(?) from the event continues. First Google released their calculation of pi to 31.4 trillion digits. Now comes this song from Canton Becker of Santa Fe, New Mexico, entitled “Shepard’s Pi.” He writes: “I composed a one-million-hour-long ambient space music song using one billion digits [&hellip.. more
Another four days until spring. Another four days until spring. Another four days until spring. Meanwhile, here’s music news for March 16, 2019. Ozzy’s not dead yet. In fact, he’s feeling much, much better after another health scare. Louis Vuitton has pulled its Michael Jackson-inspired clothing. Meanwhile, some Michael Jackson fans are planning to sue [&hellip.. more
We finally know the fate of HMV’s former flagship store in Toronto. It’s going to pot. Literally.
March 19th | by
The concept of the album is falling from favour. What’s next?
March 19th | by
RIP, Black Godfather
March 19th | by
Queen’s Brian May has released another space video
March 19th | by
New Music from the Inbox Tuesday Edition! (Mar. 19, 2019): Black Label Society, Rain Over St. Ambrose, Mammoth Penguins, & More!
March 19th | by
The Music Technology MeetUp is for anyone who is interested in connecting with veterans in the Music and Technology industries and those who simply love music and want to learn more about how technology has shaped the way we consume, create, and monetize music. Check out the video from one of our events below.
