the immediate aftermath

...and now, of course, the two most popular posts on my music blog are this and this - proving, if nothing else, the old adage that sex and death sells. I haven't had enough to time to assimiliate the barrage of comment that has followed Plan B's demise...but it's interesting to note that the overwhelming majority of it is occuring within specifically web 2.0 environments, particularly on Twitter and in the blogosphere - none from the mainstream whatsoever (aside from a cursory mention or two in trade journals).

There again, why should The Guardian (for example) write about Plan B's demise? They weren't exactly quick to pick up on the death of this guy, either.

a salutory lesson

The most popular recent posting on my music blog is this. The least popular is this. Call me a cynic, but somehow I think it has little to do with the music or level of criticism, and everything to do with marketing (i.e. presentation). I'm falling into the classic critics' trap of thinking people want to read words for their own merits. It wasn't true in print environments, and it isn't true in web 2.0 environments.

sociology vs consumer guides

I wonder. Is my other blog an attempt to change my critical style, in response to the fact the entire blogosphere now seems to take a sociological approach to music criticism? (i.e. It's all about the interaction with the audience, specifically the individual writing the blog.) Or is my style of writing mutating because of the physical demands of blogging, and the way it almost forces you to link to other sites?

Either way, it's starting to look worryingly close to...no, don't be too concerned, not criticism viewing rock-as-art...but a consumer guide, what with the overload of hypertext.