Music and Advertising

With Ad, Music Downloads Sing a New Tune:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/30/business/media/30adco.html?scp=5&sq=music%20itunes&st=cse

This article discusses a new online music downloading service called FreeAllMusic.com, which they describe as a combination of iTunes and Hulu. Basically, the site allow free music downloads, but you must watch an ad first, then the company whose ad you chose pays for that download in what they call a "microsponsorhip". While this seems like a good idea, both to help decrease illegal music downloading and help companies sponsor music, I'm not sure that it will actually work. The article suggests that listeners will be forced to watch and pay attention to the ad they choose, making it a much more effective marketing tool. I don't think this will be the case however, and people will still just ignore the ad and continue on to the "free" music. Also, as of now, the service only allows 20 downloads per month, with a maximum of 5 each session. So while this is a great alternative to illegally downloading music for free on the internet, I don't think it will make to much of a difference, since people will want more than 20 free songs in a month. To me this is definitely a good idea and a great start to correcting the illegal downloading problem, but it should definitely be expanded on.

Music and the 21st Century

I think one of the best and worst aspects of music in the 21st century is the easy access to anything and everything. Like the article said, it really is great to immediately be able to find the music you want and instantly download it to your computer. This instant gratification is definitely nice when you already know what you want, but in the search for new music it can often become a challenge. I know for me its hard to find new music I love that isn't top 40-type stuff. Plus when the search for music occurs completely from your laptop through your search there aren't any surprises. I wish there was still a music culture of going to a record store and looking through everything, being introduced to an obscure band by the music-loving store owner, and finding things by accident. It seems like the only time I truly randomly stumble across new music is through Pandora, but even that is somewhat dictated by what I already know I like. I guess that's my main problem with the way music is developing with new technology. The new benefits of instant gratification have replaced the greater benefits of discovering new music through connections with other fans.

Music and TV

One of my favorites TV shows right now is How I Met Your Mother, a hilarious show about a group of young friends living in New York who hang out mainly in a bar. There is always background music playing while they're in the bar, just as background noise to help complete the setting. In this episode there is a new female bartender, and when the characters first see her She's My Cherry Pie by Poison starts to play as they show her in slow motion. This use of music adds to the scene, emphasizes how all the men in the bar are attracted to her. Also, the main character who is narrating is always talking about things in his life that lead to him meeting his wife. This commentary, and any other time where his actions are significant to his future wife, are always accompanied by calm, instrumental music to set a slightly romantic tone. In the last episode I saw there was also a huge musical scene with all of the characters. Overall the music complements the action of the show, becoming more fast paced when a character is running or searching for something. As a comedy show, How I Met Your Mother is always using music to add to the comedy without using words.

Music and Place

One place that I encounter music is in party situations. Its not something that you are always paying full attention to, but the music is definitely a major feature of any party. Playing the wrong music can completely ruin an otherwise successful party. In different places the music can change to set the mood of whatever type of party the hosts are trying to create. For instance if there's a theme party, for example cowboy themed, country music can instantly and easily set the tone, and get people into character. Big parties require louder music to keep people there and keep people full of energy. A smaller get together among close friends may require more laid back music played at a much lower volume to allow for conversation. Although music can often fade into the background at some parties, for other parties live music can be main attraction. Especially for college fraternities one way to bring people and create a successful party is to hire a live band. While these aren't usually famous bands, and sometimes not even very talented bands, the aspect of live music creates a completely different vibe from parties were music is just played in the background. So, no matter how music is used in a party situation, in my experience the music can either make or break the party.

Musical Preferences

Picking a top five favorites songs is a challenge because there are so many songs that I enjoy for tons of different reasons. So to make this a little easier I decided to pick five songs that, no matter when or where, or even how long its been, I always love hearing them and they always put me in a better mood. So, in alphabetical order by artist here are the top five that fit that description as of right now (sadly, some of them are pretty embarrassing):

1. Girl Beck

Whenever I hear this song I instantly feel better. The video game like introduction reminds me of wasting time as a little kid and the summery feel of the lyrics and melody make me want to be out in the sun, relaxing no matter what time of year it is.

2. Rockin the Suburbs Ben Folds

I guess growing up as a boring middle class American in the suburbs makes the virtually nonexistent teen angst that he's singing about weirdly appealing to me.

3. My Name Is Eminem

Don't make fun of me for this, but for some unexplained reason I absolutely love this song. It literally makes me laugh whenever I hear it and I just can't help but sing along. And there's really absolutely no reason besides that I just like it, as embarrassing as that is.

4. What I Got Sublime

Ok so no embarrassment here, I really truly love this song. It might seem like a cliched song choice out of all of Sublime's songs, and there's definitely others that I think are better and might even like more, but for me this song has that lasting quality. I could hear it over and over and not be tired of it, and the great mood it always puts me in.

4. Fat Lip Sum 41

Again, this one's pretty embarrassing and I know this song/band hasn't been cool since middle school, but I still have this weird attachment to it. It's just fun every time I hear it, and sing every word as loud as I can't (I know you know all the words too...).

Music and Snobbery/Elitism

The only type of music that I whole-heartedly despise is screamo, and more generally any music that involves that type of angry, non-singing, and sometimes (at least to me) almost scary music. I guess this music just doesn't appeal to me because I have a hard time relating to it, and I have a hard time relating to the people who seem to like it. I generally am not a very angry person and I think the directness, that in-your-face emotion is too overwhelming for me. Music that I usually listen to puts me in a better mood, relaxes me, or helps to give me energy. So, this angry, mosh pit inspiring music just doesn't hit home with me. Also the musicians generally seem to be kind of outrageous in a way that is mainly just disturbing to me. The dark clothes, make-up, etc that often shows up on the performers creates an atmosphere that I can not relate to at all. I guess some of this dislike is created simply because I just don't have a life experience that it fits into, but even more than that, on a basic level it just doesn't appeal to my senses-and that's really why I can't stand it.

Music and Commerce

Obviously, as with anything where everyone is trying to make a profit, the business of making and selling music has a lot of problems. But what stood out to me, as Danny Goldberg writes in The Ballad of the Mid-Level Artist, is that almost all of the solutions to those problems come from the same source-technology. Goldberg writes that "some Web executives and tech savants have claimed that digital distribution will lead to fairer and more generous contracts for artists", but I think that there is also a lot to loose because of this new technology. While internet technology will provide some cuts in expenses by lowering recording costs and eliminating the middleman, I think that a lot of the best things about buying music will be lost. By making the change to selling music solely on the internet, the CD will be lost. Personally, if I really like a band I buy the CD. For me it means so much more to have the official CD in my hands, to get to see the cover art, read the liner notes and have a concrete object that represents this band, this music that I love. Also, although this may sound bad, buying the actual CD is my way of showing my support for the band-spending the extra money for everything a CD includes, showing that I felt the music was good enough to go through the system and, in my own mind, legitimize their work. If I don't like an artist I'll just download a single song, or find some free way of acquiring it-my own personal blow to their career. So for me, the CD signifies more than just all the songs it includes. For me it shows my admiration, like I'm giving my personal blessing. Another reason I don't want the CD to disappear is the value of finding new songs simply because they are hidden in a CD, and the value of hearing music in the order it is supposed to be heard. While great songs always sound great, hearing songs on a CD in a certain order can give life to a song or allow you to understand what it's really meant to be about. If music is only available on the internet the personal, tangible qualities that I love about CDs will disappear, and I think that is a larger problem than the extra money spent on creating them.